I have a good friend who is considering the Axis A22 for his purchase this winter for 2013.... he is a concerned about the longevity of the vinyl and how it will last. He covers his boat when not in use, but definitely uses them. Usually 150+ hours a season.... Apparently Malibu is using a lesser quality vinyl product than they use on the Wakesetter series.

Does anyone here who currently owns an Axis have any feedback on how the vinyl is holding up. For people who trade there boat in every year please do not reply, looking for someone who has a 3-4 year old boat and what there experiences are with the vinyl quality against tearing, fading, etc.... and how many hours are on your boat.

Yes, the vinyl on the 2013 model is upgraded. Is your friend looking at a 2013 or a old stock 2012?
(Or a used 2012 fully loaded with LS3 for the price of a base new with the small motor )

The vinyl is definitely something that will require attention and care. I have 350 hours on my 2012 and the vinyl is as good as new. But there are issues with separation at the piping on the skybox seat in particular because that's where everyone tends to step down off the sunpad.
(I always pull the skybox seat forward and make everyone step on the fiberglass transmission cover step instead.)

x2 5 flat. 2011 with 135 hours no problems. I can see the stitching starting to widen at the piping on the rear bench (skybox seat that slides) when people step on it. I too have started pulling this seat forward so that people will step down onto the fiberglass v/drive access cover instead.

2013's vinyl will be a lot more like the malibu thickness so should be no problem or concern at all.

. Travis, I've owned a bunch of different boats, as well as two A22's. The quality of the vinyl in my A22s is equivalent to what I had in my '02 MC XStar. That's not a bad thing at all. The vinyl does not have any texture to it, and is not as thick as what you will find in a vlx, mb or mc, but I've not had any problems with it tearing or ripping. That being said, if you are hard on your vinyl, no matter what boat you own, it will not remain perfect. I've had seams pull at the piping in the rear corner seats of all of my CC 230's, my vlx, and last years A22. When I say pull, I don't mean completely separate, but I mean begin to stretch some. You just have to keep people from stomping repeatedly on any area where there is like a 90 degree bend in piping. I don't care what boat we're talking about, it's just a weak point.

What I have found is that the smooth vinyl on the pre '13 A22's is easier to keep clean than the textured vinyl. The vinyl on my friend's '13 LSV requires a fingernail scrub brush to get dirt and grime out of the textured vinyl. I'm not saying the textured vinyl is not more durable, it probably is because it's thicker, but it's takes a bit more work to keep perfectly clean.

As referenced above, the '13 Axis vinyl was changed somewhat to a textured vinyl. I haven't touched it in person yet, so I can't comment on the thickness, but it is my understanding that it is thicker than the vinyl in a pre '13 boat like mine. The good news is that the interior pieces in the Axis boats are so compartmentalized and simple, that replacement skins, if you ever need them, are relatively affordable.

Like someone mentioned above, I may know of a fully loaded '12 A22 vandall with an LS3 that you could buy for the same price as a new vandall with the small motor.

I have a 2010 with 400 hours on it. The only vinyl issue I had was the same as everybody with the skybox. Luckily I got it warrantied within the two years and issue was resolved. It was a double stitching vs triple stitching issue on that back seat. The warranty one that came in is the new vinyl. It feels a little better than the current vinyl. The rest of the vinyl is holding up great and I have no complaints. It looks just as good as new and I try to keep it cleaned up as best I can. Its held up very well.

Thank you for all the feedback. He is going to be riding behind the Axis in the next couple weeks. He currenly has a 2007 MB B52 23V with 900+ hours on it. He really likes my boats VLX wake, and has been behind the new MB and also liked the wake as well. I told him the A22 always gets great feedback from owners, I rarely see any complaints about the boat. I told him for $60k he could probably get a really nice loaded A22 with the LS3 motor, plug and play, quad board racks, etc... I think the MB pricing is pretty close to Axis pricing.

Unfortunately, Malibu has raised the Wakesetter pricing 5% a year for the past couple years, apparently material costs are skyrocketing right now. Not sure if this is also applying to Axis, maybe the $60k for the Axis not going to be possible either.

He was also interested in the Supra SA 450, I actually was able to see one pull the INT Western Regionals a few weeks ago. Great boat, but the price tag on the 450 HP model is right at 90k. Its a little bit more than he had expected. I think the biggest bang for his buck will come from the A22 or MB line.

I do have one other question on the A22, how does the manual wedge work? Can you get the A22 with auto wedge if desired? Is it a big deal to adjust the manual wedge, seems like a pretty simple operation and no lenco tabs to fail either.

Can not get the power wedge on the Axis. Autoset wedge only. It's very easy, you simply drop it down. It doesn't lock down, it 'free floats' and finds it's optimum drag angle. To stow it, you reach down and lift it up up until the spring pins lock in place.

There's no way he can get a '13 a22 with the ls3 for $60k. Not going to happen. I mean, maybe if he orders a base boat with no stereo and the only option is the ls3, but that's about it. The ls3 is like an 8k+ option for '13. Take the base boat, add a bimini, wedge, ls3, pnp and you're probably still over 60k.

Can not get the power wedge on the Axis. Autoset wedge only. It's very easy, you simply drop it down. It doesn't lock down, it 'free floats' and finds it's optimum drag angle. To stow it, you reach down and lift it up up until the spring pins lock in place.

It's called the floating wedge. Not sure what Axis charges for it; you can buy the parts and install it yourself for about $1200. Not sure if Axis offers to sell the boat with just the wedge bracket (Malibu offers to do that); if so, that's another good option to take to shave some money off and upgrade to the wedge later if desired.

Stupid great deal to be had on a 2012 MB 23V in TN, 409 , 4 WS tower speaks etc. loaded up on a blinged up BM trailer under 60, saw it the other day it's...perfect, I sold one just like it loaded up for 70

Stupid great deal to be had on a 2012 MB 23V in TN, 409 , 4 WS tower speaks etc. loaded up on a blinged up BM trailer under 60, saw it the other day it's...perfect, I sold one just like it loaded up for 70

Is an "MB 23V" another special edition of the Axis line... like the Vandall or Recon?

Second on the 60K price with ls3. I'd opt for the monsoon 350 and add a 2315 acme. The 350 is a $1200 dollar option. You can still get a base, budget ride from Axis, but those options add up quick.
I've got a 2011 and vinyl has held up well. Only problem is with the piping on skybox seating. Didn't separate, but showed some stretch at stitch marks. This is only due to people stepping on it from platform as others have mentioned. I've felt the 2013 vinyl and IMO feels much thicker/durable.

I dont know if your talking how will it hold up in the next 3yrs or we talking 10-15 years. No one really knows how it will hold up over 10yrs at this stage of the game for the Axis. Its just to new. IMPO its more about how and where its used and how well its cleaned and cared for. If your a fanatic about cleaning and protecting I bet it will last as well as any other. If your kind of a slacker on care I would say it will fail faster than the "higher" quality stuff. If your only going to keep the boat for a couple of years I am sure it will it will still look great and you wont have any issues with it when the time comes to get rid of it.